NEWS RELEASE: Missouri NEA leaders host Degrees Not Debt workshop

NEWS RELEASE

From the Missouri National Education Association

For further information:
Kristin Owen
(202) 549-1992

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Feb. 24, 2015

WHO:Missouri National Education Association will provide a seminar on college affordability for educators and students. Leaders of the event are Kim Garbs, president of the Fort Zumwalt NEA, and Anita Miller, president of the Francis Howell Education Association.

WHERE: Fort Zumwalt East High School Auditorium, 600 First Executive Avenue, St. Peters, MO, 63376

WHY: The Missouri National Education Association and local affiliates Fort Zumwalt NEA and Frances Howell EA will hold a Degrees Not Debt workshop 5 p.m. Feb. 25 to raise awareness of the college affordability crisis and help students and educators find solutions. NEA members across the country will be hosting campus-based and community events this spring to spread the word about college debt and provide resources on how to reduce and/or eliminate it.

“With seven out of 10 college graduates owing an average $30,000 in student loans, student debt is no longer just a burden — it’s become a barrier to the American Dream,” Garbs says. “The thousands of educators and students who have joined NEA’s Degrees Not Debt campaign don’t think that’s right. Together, we seek to make college more affordable and accessible to all.”

There are solutions to this crisis of college affordability. NEA offers the following solutions:

Increase need-based federal aid, like Pell Grants.

Refinance loan interest rates. Citizens can refinance loans on cars or homes but not student loans.

Expand loan forgiveness programs, especially those for people working in public service careers like education.

Increase federal and state governments reinvestment in higher education.

The Missouri National Education Association represents teachers, education support professionals, college faculty, retired teachers and students studying to be teachers in school districts and on college campuses throughout the state. Missouri NEA is an affiliate of the 3.2 million-member NEA.